AIB to partner UCD in new social innovation initiative

Allied Irish Banks is to partner University College Dublin in a new initiative aimed at translating scholarship into social and economic innovation.

The Partnership and Innovation Initiative was this morning launched in tandem with the bank’s newly refurbished branch on the university’s Belfield Campus.

The programme will support academic-inspired initiatives designed to improve the economic and social well-being of the country.

It will also seek to promote scholarship in the areas of leadership, service to the community and knowledge transfer.

"AIB returned to profitability earlier this year and we are now well placed to play our part in Ireland's economic future. We believe this partnership with UCD will provide important support to graduates whose contribution is so vital to Ireland's economic recovery," David Duffy, chief executive of AIB, said.

AIB already has a long-standing relationship with UCD. The bank was a founding sponsor for Nova UCD - the University’s incubation and technology transfer facility, which has supported over thirty spin-out companies in the past ten years.

President of UCD, Professor Andrew Deeks, said: "Recognising the contribution of academic expertise and the importance of education and scholarship to the national recovery, this innovation partnership between UCD and AIB is a practical demonstration of our commitment to the national agenda.